Fifty-six-year-old Kéré was happy about the honour although it came to him as “a huge surprise”. He explained that his journey to the top has not been easy, since he had limited opportunities growing up in his village. In an interview with www.pritzkerprize.com, he said "I grew up in a community where there was no kindergarten. I remember the room where my grandmother would sit and tell stories with a little light, while we would huddle close to each other and her voice inside the room enclosed us, summoning us to come closer and form a safe place. This was my first sense of architecture”, he noted.

Kéré was the first child in his community to have attended school. He recounted that he had to learn in a hot classroom with more than 100 other students. This experience of poor building facilities pushed him to do what he could to improve the lives of Burkina Faso's children, using architecture.

In 2004, Kéré’s first building, – the Gando Primary school was built in his home village of Gando. It was a project that utilized traditional techniques, using clay, and involved the entire community. The women fetched water to make the bricks whiles the children gathered stones for the foundation. Kéré believes that the more local materials are used in architecture, the better the local economy and indigenous knowledge can be promoted. The Gando Primary School won the prestigious Aga Khan Award for Architecture, earning Kéré great recognition right at the start of his career.

The fame of the Gando school later paved the way for Kéré to design more educational establishments, like the Lycée Schorge, also in Burkina Faso. Kéré has been recognized as one of the most relevant contemporary architects in the world who is making positive change. His works include the National Assembly of Burkina Faso, the Lycée Schorge secondary school, the Léo surgical clinic and health centre, the 2017 Serpentine Pavilion, and Xylem, and the recently opened pavilion for the Tippet Rise Art Centre. Kéré has also done designs for the famous Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, which runs each year in California and attracts audiences around the world.

Kéré stands out for his use of light in his works. Pritzker Prize facilitators noted in their announcement: "a poetic expression of light is consistent throughout Kéré's works.” In all his works, rays of the sun filter into the buildings, courtyards, and intermediary spaces. This technique helps to overcome harsh midday conditions to offer comfort in places of gathering.

“I am hoping to change the paradigm, push people to dream and undergo risk. It is not because you are rich that you should waste material. It is not because you are poor that you should not try to create quality”- Diébédo Francis Kéré'

REFERENCE

Information from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-60764585, https://theconversation.com/diebedo-francis-kere and https://www.blackpast.org/ was used in this story